The Practice Of Righteousness

"Walking in The Spirit"

Text: Romans 8:1-25

Only when we walk in the Spirit of God will we ever have peace and freedom in this physical life we have now, while we are still alive.

2Co 3:17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

In this chapter we will see the part the Holy Spirit plays in our "Salvation".

1.) Without the "Work" that Jesus Christ did on the Cross there could be no Salvation!

2.) Without the "Presence" and "Constant Work" of the Holy Spirit in our lives we would have no way to apply the "Free Gift" of God’s Grace to our Salvation.

3.) Jesus Christ and Him "Crucified" is the message concerning our Salvation.

4.) Christ Jesus and Him "Glorified" is the message concerning our Perfecting us as Believers.

5.) The "Teaching" of the Holy Ghost(Holy Spirit) is "Fundamental" to the work of our Sanctification.

Sanctification is God’s act of making us Holy. We have to be Holy to live with Our Holy God!

a.) It is God’s "Comforter", the indwelling Spirit, in whose ministry we find peace and love.

b.) It is God’s "Comforter", the indwelling Spirit, in whose ministry we find our Divine purpose in this life.

c.) It is God’s "Comforter", the indwelling Spirit, in whose ministry we come to know the "Power of God".

d.) It is God’s "Comforter" that will always lead us to Our Lord Jesus and His "Thoughts".

Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Joh 15:26  But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

Our Text:

Rom 8:1  There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:3  For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
Rom 8:4  That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Rom 8:5  For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

The Holy Spirit is mentioned 19 times in Romans chapter 8.

We must see the importance of the Holy Spirit in our daily walk.

It is in this chapter where we must see our own "Declaration of Freedom"!

We can immediately see that the only ones that will not be condemned are those that have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

We can also see that only  "believers" can walk in the Spirit of God.

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: [in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise],
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

These are the same ones written in the "Lamb’s Book of Life"!

Rev 21:27  And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

These that are written in the Lamb’s Book Of Life, are the only ones that will live with God in His New Heaven!

All the rest will live eternally in that place created for Satan and the fallen angels, it is their own choice to do so.

It is the work of the Holy Spirit to deliver every believer in the true Law of Life. This New Life is a deliverance from the old law of sin and death.

The Holy Spirit provides the New Life within us, where there was before condemnation.

It is the Holy Spirit that will deliver us from that battle with our Sin Nature we learned of in chapter 6 and 7.

If we have trusted Jesus as our Savior, then we have no other conditions to meet to be indwelled by God’s Holy Spirit.

In the sin of Adam we were condemned. In the sinless life of  Jesus there is no condemnation!

This verse does not say we will not make mistakes.

We will always suffer for our mistakes while we are God’s earthly temple but we can never, ever be condemned again.

It is the Law that condemns, but as believers we have a new relationship with God’s Laws.

***1.) The Law cannot ever claim us again:(vs 2)

We have been made free from the law of sin and death. Our life is now in the life of the Holy Spirit who can never die.

The law of sin and death was set in motion when Adam disobeyed God. Adam died because his relationship changed with God and was severed. Death is the product of sin!

Jas 1:14  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
Jas 1:15  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

***2.) The law cannot ever again condemn the believer: (vs 3)

Why is this true?

Our Lord Jesus Christ has already suffered "OUR" condemnation on that Cross!

The law can only condemn but Jesus Christ did what the law could not do, Jesus came that we might have life.

Joh 20:30  And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book:
Joh 20:31  But these are written, [that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name].

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

***3.)The law can never ever control the believer:

As believers we can lead a righteous life in the Power of the Holy Spirit.

There is no law that has the power to produce "holiness"! The righteousness God demands can only be fulfilled through the Holy Spirit.

Any that are what we call legalist, will try to obey God in his own strength and will always come up short.

It is the Holy Spirit led believer, the Christian, that when yielding to the Holy Spirit will enjoy the newness of life and joy in this life on earth.

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Php 2:14  Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
Php 2:15  That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;

*****Verse 5.)

This verse IS NOT about the two types of Christians. (The Carnal and the Spiritual)

This verse IS about about the "Saved" and the "Unsaved"!

We must never forget the two most important things to the believer:

1.) Jesus Christ  "shed His blood", (He did not spill His blood) to pay for our guiltiness and to bring us closer to God.

2.) We died with Jesus that day on the cross, (He was made sin for us).

We no longer have a history with Adam. Our history now is with The Lord Jesus Christ.

The "unsaved person" (the lost) do not possess the Holy Spirit of God. The mind of a lost person is still centered on things that satisfy the flesh.

This does not mean that an unsaved person cannot do some things that are good.

This also does not mean that a saved person cannot do some things that are bad.

It does mean that a Christian should be noticeably different from the lost in their daily walk!

****Verse 6.)

The non-believer is alive physically, "But Dead" spiritually. To be alive spiritually is t iso be indwelled with the Holy Spirit of God!

The non-believer is dead toward God and does not respond to the calling of the Holy Spirit. This the reason a lost person is available for Satan’s use.

2Ti 2:26  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

The "Carnal Minded" will make themselves enemies with the Lord.

Just the name Jesus will burn like hot coals inside them and they will be angry and fill left out not knowing the truth nor seeking the truth. They just cannot reach a peace within themselves.

We know that this is true!

Isa 48:22  There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.

*****Our Text:

Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
Rom 8:8  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
Rom 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
Rom 8:10  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Rom 8:11  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

The word "enmity" is the quality of being an enemy. It is a tragic thing to be an enemy of God. This is a fixed rooted hatred and we can see the evidence of it when the name Jesus is mentioned in this world.

To be in the "flesh" is to be lost and to be lost is to be an enemy of God. This not something God has caused but that carnal minded lost person has caused because they are led by Satan.

Jas 4:4  Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? [whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God].

We see that same word "enmity" which means acting like an enemy.

Remember God loves the entire world and He sent His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ to save the world.

It is not God who is the enemy!

It is God’s will to be a Savior!

The Bible says:

Gal 4:16  Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

To those that are lost, we therefore become their enemy when we try to witness to them. Not many will even listen until they have reached rock bottom in their lives and see no way out.

To be unsaved without the Holy Spirit is the lowest level of human life.

Thank God that through Jesus Christ we can step up to the next level with "Faith" in Jesus Christ.

Verse 9.) says:

To be saved and indwelled with God’s Holy Spirit is to then belong to God the Father in Heaven and this can only happen by whole hearted in God the Son, Jesus Christ, and the work He did on the Cross!

By this we then belong to God and are no longer an Enemy!

1Co 6:19  What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
1Co 6:20  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Until I was owned of God I did not know what the word "Life" really meant!

Unless the rapture of the Church happens while I am still alive, this body I have will die, but while I am still alive God will use His Holy Spirit that lives in me to make me a useful tool in His hands.

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

It is when this happens to a lost soul that they will realize they are not of this world and there is a New World coming.

1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
1Pe 1:8  Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
1Pe 1:9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

*****Our Text:

Rom 8:12  Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
Rom 8:13  For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

It is not enough to just have God’s Spirit within us. Yes we are saved but if we do not allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in our lives then we will not be of much use to God.

Eph 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

It is only then that we can have that abundant, victorious life that God so wants us to have. We have no further obligation to our flesh and it is the Holy Spirit that will convict us of any sin.

What are some of the ways we grieve the Holy Spirit?

Eph 4:31  Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
Eph 4:32  And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

It is easy to see when we do these things, the Holy Spirit cannot work in our lives nor in our Church!

We have an obligation to the Holy Spirit to yield to the Holy Spirit for without His work in us we could not be saved.

Because the Holy Spirit is the "Spirit of Life", He can lead us to obey the Word of God and Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is when the Holy Spirit works in our lives that we can be called Christians by those around us.

This is when it will be noticed that we are a "peculiar people"!

1Pe 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, [a peculiar people]; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

When some one tells us we are strange then we can rejoice knowing the Holy Spirit is working within us.

Christian’s are only Christian’s when they are truly like Jesus Christ!

It is the same "Spirit of life" that is the "Spirit of death" to our old sin nature. The Holy Spirit can, if we follow His lead, put to death the "sinful deeds" of our bodies.

As we yield our bodies to the Holy Spirit, He will apply to us and in us, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit is also the spirit of adoption.

We come into God’s family by birth. But the instant we are born into the family, God adopts us and  makes us his children. God has become our Abba father.

The Holy Spirit teaches us from the Word then we can receive God’s wealth by faith. There is no need for us to lead defeated lives.

When God finished His work of Creating, He had these words:

Gen 1:31  And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.

That word "very" meant "exceedingly good!

This not the same picture we see in this passage of Romans.

God’s entire Creation groaning in pain.

There is suffering and death every where we look. Some one robbing a bank or a store. Someone at our schools just randomly killing anyone they see. Mothers and fathers killing their own children and even sometimes the children killing the parents.

I know where I am going and I find myself wanting to go on home sometimes.

All these things are happening because of the "SIN" that is in this world.

Notice these words:

It is God’s creation that is suffering so we can see that WHAT GOD CREATED IS NOT THE BLAME NOR AT FAULT!

Paul uses the words: vanity, bondage, decay, pain and suffering to describe our world around us and we know that this true today.

Paul said this pain was like a woman in labor and we know her pain would end when her child was delivered.

That’s exactly when our pain will end, WHEN OUR REDEEMER RETURNS TO CLAIM HIS CHILDREN!

2Co 4:15  For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2Co 4:16  For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
2Co 4:17  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
2Co 4:18  While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

If we stay focused on the Lord Jesus Christ we will be ready when He returns.

Let’s Pray!